Corn husker roll



Sept. 16, 1952 H. E. BECK ETAL CORN HUSKER ROLL 2 SHEETS- SHEET 1 FiledJan. 26, 1949 d Y V ffl li. i

M A 2 w MJ/ @L fwf CM SePf- 16, 1952 H. E. BECK ETAL 2,610,634

CORN HUSKER ROLL Filed Jan. 26, 1949 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 Patented Sept. 16,l1952 com: HUSKER ROLL Henry ELBeck, Racine, Wis., John C. Jozwik, StateCollege," N. Mex., and vWillard J. limes, Racine,` Wis., assignors. toJ. I. Case Company, Va corporation of Wisconsin c Application January26, 1949, Serial No. 72,852

YThe present invention relates generally to corri harvesting apparatus'and has particularrelation ltothefliu'sking roll mechanism used in oonnection lwith this apparatus.-`

ln-conventional corn husking apparatus, the picked earsf of corn aredeposited on a bed of rapidlyV turrnfngl rolls, arranged in cooperatingpairs'withv--eaehroll rotating oppositely tothe immediately adjacentroll. Thecooperating rolls eng'l'geV the husks in one Yor moreof thenips which exist' along the line of Vtangential contactvsoniejdevices"there was considerable bruising of 'thegkerrjiels.4IAlso;V the use of the previously knownhusking" mechanisms has beensomewhat limited 'due tor the fact that husking must be accomplishedwhen the moisture content of thev corn'is-within'iailimited rangef Ifthe cornis too"y dryjsome conventional husking vmechanisms tendto-'tea'rlthe husks f insteadf-ofstripping them from the'earsfand mayshell the corn excessively. On theother-hand, if the corn is notsufficiently dry, thefhretoforeknown machines may bruise and damageth'elker-nelscausing .the corn to rot and moldf 'Another particularly.troublesome difiiculty encountered 'in the prior' art v husking'machines aro'se .from the unsuitability .or inadequacy ?o'f fthemechanism provided for accornplisliing lateral yielding of thecooperating huskinglrolls `when an undeveloped ear, piece of cobor'fother trash became caught therebetween; f A furtherldifcultyencountered throughpthe use" of presently known .mechanisms is theaccomplishment-of continuedistrippin'g action in the courseof husking.operationsiwh'en-a relatively large object passes between the. huskingrolls.. Since 'conventional husking rolls `are fabricated .fromnon-resilient materials, lateral yielding -o'f the rolls is frequently*provided through-supporting the rolls -inbearings which areurgedj.together vby resilientv means; i The mechanicalV ldilicultjies inproviding such sup- 'port and "driving means'for the rolls are readily`1 claim. (o1. 13o-5) Cil apparent, but the resulting inefficienthusking operation is of more importance to the operator. `The principalobject of the present invention,

therefore, is torvprovide animproved husking mechanismfor use inapparatus of the class described which is capable of surmounting theabove mentioned difculties. As will hereinafter appear, this object isaccomplished by the provision of an improved husking roll which may beused in combination with similar or other rolls to obtain the improvedoperation.- An additional object of the invention is theprovision of ahusking mechanism which is adapted to pass relatively large materialbetween the rolls comprising the husking bed withoutjimpairing thestripping action of the mechanism. Further and more specificA objects ofour invention include provision of an improved husking roll, inaccordance with the above object, Ywhich will berelatively inexpensiveto manufacture, quiet in operation, capable of operation for longperiods oftime under adverse operatingV conditions, and able to operatefrom a direct, positive, drive connection. Other objects and advantagesof the inventionl will be'jmade more apparent by reference totheaccompanying drawings and the succeedingdescription of certain preferredembodiments thereof.

Fig.' lis a perspective view'of a typical husking unit havingjaroll bedwhich includes husking rolls 'inaccordance with theinvention; Fig. 2. isafdiagrammatidside elevational vie of the husking'unit shown in Fig. 1;f

Fig. 3 isjafragmentary, plan View of one pair of"cooperatinghusking'rolls shown in Fig. 1;

Fig.` fl "isja sectionahend'yiew of the rol takerialongzline lL-'ll4 inFig. 2;, and

Figs 5, and '6 are fragmentary, plan views showingtwo differentcombinations of husking rolls Ain accordance with the invention.`

The husking rolls of the invention may be incorporated in any of thevarioustypesofv corn husking mechanisms having cooperatingpairs of rollsfor'accomplisliing the 'husking operation, WhileA the. husking mechanismmay constitute `a part of a'corn harvesting apparatus, it maybea'separate stationary unit. The particular corn husking unit which isillustrated at 1.. in fthe .drawings is' of' a type which is adaptedforjuse with' atractor supported corn harvester, The frame structure 9of thejhusking unit "1 is fabricated from suitable angle, channelan'dplate sections, 'and is .adapted to :support the"various operativeelements of the'unit. These elements .include fthe cooperating reliswhich denne a husking bed .and 'e .Slii @Q ilfeyor i1 which :isresiliently supported an overlying relation with ifset 130 @le bsd.-f/.Psliih -Sl t type conveyor Slg .is disposed below the 'Hudkins bed.i5 :and is adapted to remove the rcorn husks and @ther for mategfialwhich drops thereon g i" e huskng operation. This conveyor I9 is fieri:adapted to separate corn kernels from the husks and other foreignmaterial that pass between the rolls during harvesting. The unit 1 alsoincludes coacting sprocket, gear, and drive chain mechanism, indicatedgenerally at 2l for activating the various moving parts. A disposalmeans 23, which may be a belt conveyor, is provided rearward of thehusking bed i5, whereby the husked corn is removed from the unit 1.

A pair of spaced-apart side members 2 5 define a passageway which isadapted to receive the picked ears of corn, and these side membersV er@'ie-.Sterne 1.1.0, and Supported. unen, the main ,frame e, The huskingbedy l5 forrnsa base or bottom for this passageway and includes therolls 21, 29, 3l 3,3 which Vcomprise two lcos operating pairs. The rolls21, 29, 3l andV 33 are positionedwith their longitudinal axes generallyparallelY but are disposed in vstauggered relation. 1n particular rol-1s21 and 3l are vertically offset below rolls 2S and 33 as shown in Fig.4. During normal operation, these rolls are so disposed that thelongitudinal axes thereof are inclined downwardly from the corn-inlet orforward end. rrangement of the rolls causes the corn n don the bed I5t'obe moved rearwardly in the husking unit 1.

Each hlvlsvking roll 21, 29, 3| and 33 is'supported upon a shaft whichVprojects from the opposite ends of the associated roll. The projectingends of the shafts 35 are journalled in suitable bearings Vwhich areattached to the main frame Structure .9 simultane@ rotation ef the C0*operating husking rolls is accomplished by four spur gears 31, each efwhich is attached to the forward end of one of the roll-supportingshafts 35. This end of each of the shafts 35 is of suicient length toperinit'the gears 31 to be disposed forwardly of the roll bearingsprovided at the forward end of the rolls21,A 2e, 3l and 33.

The spur gears 31 are in direct'engagement with eachother whereby `therotation of each roll is inverted and translated to the adjacent roll.

A bevel gear I3i! is attached to the shaft of roll 29Aforwa`rdly ofthespur gear 31, asis shownin Fig. 1. This bevel gear 39 registers withanother bevel gear 4i keyed toa transversely'extending shaft 43 which isjournalled in suitable bearings attached to the main Aframe structure"9. A sprocket 4 5 is keyed tothe shaft 43 outward of the main framestructure 9 (Fig. l), and is adapted to be engaged by a suitable drivechain 41 which is connected tothe main driving' means for the apparatus.

The conveyor mechanism I1 includes' an endless cross slat type conveyor`5i and a 'frame structure t '53 which extends generally longitudinallyof the husking unit 1 and which is resliently supported on the mainframe 9. The resilient support of the frame structure 53 is accomplishedby means of a pair of compression spring supports or counter balances 55which are attached 'to the forward portion of theV structure (Fig. 2).The rearward portion of the structure 53 is rotatively supported on atransversely extending shaft 5.1 which is also adapted to support :apair of driving sprockets 53 for the conveyor 5i. A pair of largesprockets 6I are rotatively' supported on the forward end of theconveyor v frame structure 53. These sprockets 6I are adapted to supportthe cross slat conveyor 5i and define the forward limit of travel ofthis conveyor. i

The conveyor mechanism l1 issuitably tensioned by means of two pairs ofresiliently supported sprockets 63 and 65 which are disposedintermediate the large sprockets 6I and driving sprockets 59 and whichare rotatably attached, one pair above the other, to the rearwardportion of a spring supported structure 61, as is illustrated in Fig. 2.The spring support for this structure`61 is accomplished by attachingthe forward portion to the compression spring supports in a manner suchthat the tensioning sprockets 63 and 65 may move up and downindependently of the conveyor frame structure 53 and the large forwardsprockets 6 l.

The shaft 51 which supports vthe driving sprockets 5S ofthe conveyormechanismfH ,is rotated by a sprocket .S9 which vis fixedly attachedthereto. This sprocket 69 is disposed on the right end of the supportingshaft 51 (Fig. 2) and is adapted to connect to the main driving-means 2lof thehusklg unit 1. Through the above-described arrangement of parts,the `conveyor mechanism l1 is adapted to effectively press the ears ofcorn vinto engagement with the husking rolls 21, 2-9, 3l and t3.y Y yConveyor I9 which is disposed below the husking bed l5 and which isadapted to separate the loose corn fromthe husks and otherforeign'material falling from the bed during the harvesting operation,comprises an vendless Slat-type conveyor assembly 10 which is supported,during normal operations, generally horizontally'on a pair of idler`sprockets 1I and a pair of driving sprockets 13 disposed rearwardly ofthe idler sprockets (Fig. 2,). The conveyor assembly is-of a well knowntype and includes a pair'of spaced, longitudinally extending chains 15having a plurality of spaced, transversely extending slats 1.1 attachedtherebetween. The idler Sprockets 1f are supported on a transverselyextending shaft 19 which is journalled in suitable bearings provided onthe mainframe structure 9. Aperfo rated plate or pan 88 isattacl'ied'to` themain frame 9 intermediate the idler sprockets Hand thedriving sprockets 13 `immeliatelyf belowgthe upper run of the chain 15.The grain passes through the perforations and suitable means areprovided for proper disposal of the. `grain. y

The pair of driving sprockets 13. are keyed to a transversely `extendingshaft 87| which is also journalled insuitable bearings disposed on themain frame structure VS. This latter shaft-8l supports sprockets 83`and85, rone'of `which is adaptedr to engage the-main driving means 2| andthe other of which is operatively 'connected to the sprocket V'69 which1 is adapted vto Vdrive the resiliently supported slat conveyorH. Thisoperative. connection is accomplished by'means of ra chainI 81 whichvtransmits the' power from the main driving means v2l of the huskingunit; 1l to the upper conveyor unit 5 l.

A particular disposal means, which comprises a conveyor 2,3, is shown inthe drawings rearward 0f the husking tee v15. The conveyorzs., which isadapted to convey the huskedlcornfrom lthe huskingunit 1 is illustratedas-being dSPQsed to the rear of the unit in position to receive thehusked ears as they drop from the roll bed l5.

This disposal means is `of a well known type and the conveyorincludes anendless belt elevator 9|.which is adapted totravel upwardlyiand rear'-wardly from a pair of driving sprockets 93. Thesesprocketsl93'arevattached to a transversely extendingy shaft L95,110which iskeyed a driving. sprocket 914 adapted to be connected to themain driving meansZI. 1 x

' The main driving means'2I includes a source of power. (not shown) ,.apair of sprockets 45 and 99 whichare keyed totheitransverse shaft 43dis` posed forwardly of the-husking bed I5, .anend-V less 'driving chainIUI andtheconnectingpower chain 41. The power .chain 41 connects thesource of power to the sprocket II5,.thereby rotating the shaft 43 vandcausing the'huski'ng rolls 21, 29, 3| and 33 to rotate. The other.sprocket 93, as pointed out, is keyed to the same'shaft .43 and 'isadaptedto register'with the main? driving chain IIJI. The chain' IUItravels rearwardly from` the sprocket .99 to an idler sprocket' |03journalled -in suitable.l bearings providedf in the main frame structurer9'. 'The driving chain'r IOI then passes aroundith'e elevator drivingsprocket 91.; returns forwardly, andy engages thesprocket4 85v which isvadapted to drive the slatconveyors I1 and I9. Through this arrangement,all ofthe operative.elements' of thefhusking unit 1 are.

drivenconcurrently. a.

At timesgitmay bedesirable to use otherdisposalmeansthanthatfillustrated-in Fig. 2. For example, areceptaclemaybe disposed below the outlet end `of the husking bed I5.y lWhen thisfis done, it'willbe necessary toV substitute anidler sprocketv for .theelevator driving sprocket 91 illustrated inthe drawings, in ordertomaintain propervtimed relation-between the variousotherl drivingsprockets. l Y v A sr previouslynoted, -the present invention 1sparticularly concerned with the construction of husking rolls, usedinhusking mechanisms ofthe` classv described. These rolls may be ofvarying lengthsvand diameters, butfor optimum husking efficiency` the;roll `diameter will bein the rangeof between from about 2, to 4 inches.ySuch. propor-f tioningof the husking-rollsprovides efIicien-thuskingandminimizes damage to the ears being husked.`

.Ifleretofore, ithasrbeen the practicetoemploy cooperatingrolls Vmade ofsteel orsimilar material having indentations of various designsqformed`thereinr-..-rInl contrastmwith these arrangements, thepresentinventionjcpntemplates the use, in each ofthe cooperating rollpairs, of at least one resilient roll having flutes or otherindentations of various designsjformed in the surface thereof. A,particularly eiiicient resilient husking roll is nia'n'ufa'ctu'r'edwith" a helical flute formed on its surface as shown'particularlyat II Iin Figs. 1, 3, 5 and 6. The roll -2 9is vpreferably of fabricatedconstruction having a shaft 35 of strong, relatively rigid material,such as steel, and at least 4one layer of resilient material, which canbe arubber compound.disposed about the shaft 35. In'crosssection.theshaft may bev round, but, a multisided shaft,as illustrated at I I3in Fig. 4', issomewhat more desirable infthat it lwill tend to keepthelimmediately .adjacent resilient materialY fron turning with respecttothe shaft II3. f

The helically uted resilient roll 2 9 can be used with various types ofcooperating rolls, however, the preferred combination is shown in Figs.l and 3, wherein the spirally fluted resilient roll 29 is used incombination with a steel roll 21 having a plurality of spaced-apart,longitudinally extendthe helically fluted resilient roll 29 is pairedwith a resilient or a rigid roll II5 having a` smooth cy-` lindricalsurface (Fig. 5) or with another spirally fluted roll Ill which likewisemay be ofresilient or rigid material (Fig. 6). 1

Itis necessary that the resilient husking roll. have sufficientresilience to allow the passage of an underdeveloped ear of corn orother foreignrl material between the cooperating` rolls. lfAt .theSametime it must not be so resilient as' to prevent` efficient huskingaction. In general, Iit appears that satisfactory results may beachieved vthrough the use of a roll having a'relatively thick layer ofmolded rubber or like material disposed aboutthe supportingshaft. Itisdesirable that the resilient layer have a hardness in the range of :fromabout 60A DurometerV after 10 seconds to 95A Durometer after 10 seconds,determined by a Type A'Durometertestinstrument. Y n v' :I: 'f5 The abovementioned type 'A-Durometer, used: to measure the hardness vof thevrubberscornpris-.1 ing the resilientrolls, isa'n 'instrument that jisirecognized by the American Societyxof Testing Materials and the rubberindustrygenerallyi'It has been recommended by the A. Si T. Mforithedetermintaion of the hardness of rubberian'd'l-ik'e materials; Therecommendation is tentative 'and' hasbeen given number D616.'2'However,-the'A tentative designation merely indicates that the' procedure foroperation of the apparatus is .not

definitely settled. Consequently, a.` descriptioni'off' the procedureadopted for the measurementsusedf herein will be set forth.

In the present determinations, a type eter has been used witha load'of2'poun'dsforV all measurements. verted frusto-conical impresser pointwhich presi depending upon the rubbers hardness.

.052 inches. The 'sides of the lfrusto-conical point converge atan angleof 35. The point was vfal-i lowed ten Aseconds to penetrate into therublnr surfaces tested. The extent'of the penetrationiwas measured by astandard meter used-" i with- Durometers, and the readingtaken'lfroin'"this-V meter indicated the hardness of the rubber' tested.

While a roll having a single'layer of'v resilient;

material gives good results, particularly fsatisfactory results areobtainedwhenrthe shaft covering isof a duplex or of'a multi-layer' type,las

for examplethe construction shown in FigsL- and 4. This roll, designated29, has an innerllayerj II9 composed of a relatively lsoft rubbercorn?`pound Lhaving a Durometer reading inthe range; of betweenabout 30AlDurometerafterlilsecfr onds and 60A Durometer after' l0 seconds, and hasan outer layer I2 I composed 'cfa relativelyf hard rubber compoundhaving a Durometer read-- ing in the range of between about 60ADurome,terE after 10 seconds and 100A'Durometer after l0 seconds. Theouter layer l2 I' of resilient'material" envelops the inner layer II9andis *desirably of uniform thickness throughout theroll surfacez Thehelical iiute I II is formed in the outer sur^ fac'eof the roll 29, andas -a result of'the forma'-` tion of this flute I I I and therequirement of uniform thickness of the outer layer I 2I a protrusionvor rib |23 is formed on the inner surface of theouter layer I2I. Theinner layer II9 has a spiral. flute |25 formed in its outer surfaceadapted to register with the rib I23 formed in the inner sur- The load'is translated to' anflin-lace'of the outer layer |21. The rib 123engages the flute |25 on the inner layer Vl i9 and aidsin the -bindingof the relatively hard outer layer l2! to the soft inner layer l I9. Theinner layer 119 is .vulcanized or otherwise attached tothe shaft 3,5:orH3.`

For more satisfactory' operation iny 'existing types of cornhuskingvunits, i. e.,.units having rolls with outer diametersin'therange 'of from `about 2 to 4 inches, theithiokness of the innerresilient layer H9 of the duplex roll 29'shou1d be about two to aboutsix times the thickness' of the outer resilient ylayer -IZI and it ispreferable'that thehelical flutes vl ll .should be generally semi-Circular in cross section. However, the helical flutes Hl in the rollsurface may be of varying depth and width,: and the pitch .of the flutesIH formed in thefroll 29 may be varied, depending upon the particularvembodiment of the roll.

Itis' also possible' to utilize a duplex roll 29 having an inner layerH9 of very soft rubber, such as sponge rubber, but this type *ofVY rollis ofrsornewhat more limited operation due toits inherent mechanicalcharacteristics than the previouslyv described structure. 1 p

. During the `operation of the husking apparatus 'l `illustrated'inFigs. 1 vand 2, the picked ears of corn shown at [3l in* Fig. 4,'aredroppedl on the bed .l5 of rapidly turning'husking rolls 21, 29 3l and33, andthe, husks .are engagedin hips provided along theline oftangential contact be'- tween rolls 29 and 3i 'and rolls 33 and 35. Theresiliently supported slat conveyor H overlying the roll bed .I5 aidsin; causing the husks to engage the nips.

. The resilient rolls 3| and 33 provide a greater coefficient offriction, and cause more efficient engagement of the husks with the rollnips and, in addition, tend to decreasev the shelling and bruising ofthe corn during husking. I Once the husks are vengaged between a pair ofcooperating rollsurfaces, i. e., between. rolls 2? and 22 (1r-betweenrolls vv3l and 33, the counter-rotation ofthe rolls 21, 29, 3l and 33strips olf .the husks.

The bared ear then passesl down the husking bed lite the disposal means.23.. The husks are deposited on the Slat-type conveyor l 'below thehusking bed l5 and pass to other disposal meansv tnot shown) AWhen aforeign object. reaches the nips bewhen released provides a greaterforce for eiect-' the slowed -orL temporarily lodged foreign material.

Having a. rollv of resilient material provides a furtheradvantage due tothe fact that the yielding and 4separation' at the rolll surfaces when.a. foreign. object passes between ther rolls .2'1Y and 2S or 3l and 33.`willcloselyv approximate the length of that. object. yIhis allows theremainder of the nip between the cooperating :folletov coni tinuesinnormal operation, Aresulting ;in' a considerable Yincrease 'in Ythe.Leiciency. of thel 'husking operation'. Y

From thefore'going description and., discussion it isnreadily observedVthatthe helically-fluted resilient husking roll vof the invention makes.possible a great improvement in husking'operations and when usedWith'pa similar roll or otherV roll usedin the art a more.efficientstripping. action results. .The husking apparatus uses aminimum numberr of parts and'in addition permits'husking of corn with aminimum of- .shelling of :the 'corn and damage to the kernels.The-'various Vfeatures of our inventionfwhich are'believed to be new..are expressly .set forth in the appended claims.

` lWe claim:

A husking roll adapted for use with apparatus of theolass described,said roll includingasupporting/shaft andv a :pair of generally tubularshaped layers .of'resilient material which are'zdisposed about said:shaft in ksuperposed relation, the Vinner of said layersdoeingfabricated from la resilient 'material having a hardness inthe.range from about 30-A Durometer after ten seconds to about 60-A.Durometer after ten seconds,`.the in'- nerv surface of .said .innertubular .shaped .layer being attached to said shaft andsthe outersur`face of said inner layer being of .generally .cylindrical shape andhavinga continuous flute formed therein which generally helicallycircumscribes said outer surface of said inner layer, the outer of saidgenerally tubular shaped layers being proportioned to litY over saidinner llayer and having its inner surface vprovidedwwith a'rib which isadapted to register'with the fiute on'the outer surface of said innerlayer, the outer surface of said outer layer having acontinuous fluteformed therein which helica-lly circumscriibes* said outer surface, saidflute in said outer surface of said outermost layer being disposedradially-outwardly from said rib wherebyv the resilient materialof saidvouter layer has a substantiallyl constantY thickness, the'material fromwhichv saidoutermost layer is fabricated having a hardnessof from about60A Durometer after ten-secondsto about 10G-A Durometer after v10seconds, andthe outer diameter-of said outermost tubular. memberbeing inthe-range-of from about'two to four-inches.

' HENRY Ef BECK.

JOHN C.: JOZWIK. W'IILLARD'J. INNES.

.REFERENCES CITED' l The following references are lof vre'cord'in thefile of this patent:

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